THIS WEEK WAS always going to be a rough one for Ireland’s rugby players.

Until this year, the modern November Test window has consisted of three international matches on these shores while Wales and England have gone ahead with a gruelling fourth week on the trot. Thanks to the Chicago trip, Ireland are now in the club.

Some day down the road, they’ll look back and feel the benefit of facing world cup finalists three times in four weeks, but right now, it’s more of a stiff and sore sensation.

“I certainly wouldn’t survive very long out there, not in my state,” says forwards coach Simon Easterby, a robust blindside flanker in the not-too-distant past.

Along with the rest of the coaching ticket, Easterby is having to juggle the concept of ideal match preparation with recovery from one of the toughest Tests this side has been put through. Selection for the final match of the month against Australia will take into account fitness and the number of training sessions completed in recent weeks on top of form and the task knowledge needed for a Joe Schmidt player.

Between the citings on the table, the injuries and the proximity of another big game around the corner, there are some striking similarities with the fall-out from the World Cup win over France last year. Schmidt’s squad are acutely aware of the need to buck anything resembling a trend linked to that quarter-final loss to Argentina.

“We have to take into account the physicality,” continues Easterby, “some of the figures we received from the GPS, the data does factor in every week how you manage the week.

“The players put themselves through a hell of a workload and it’s important that we get them right in the first part of the week so we can build up into Thursday and Friday and get them in a really good mental and physical state for Saturday.”

Getting the squad right on Monday meant a day free of a regular training session. Recovery was prioritised to put players in position to train today and Thursday at Carton House before a light Captain’s Run at the Aviva Stadium.

Jack McGrath, who has consistently proven himself as one of the best engines in the Ireland pack, admitted that there was still a lingering soreness as he sat down to face the microphones and TV cameras.

“We haven’t played four games in November in a long time, it’s a bit different,” says McGrath, “but we’re playing Australia. It’s a team who are going pretty well at the moment. It’d be easy to get ourselves up for it. It’s okay to be a bit sore now, but by Saturday we’ll all be fine.

“It’s just about being professional: looking after yourself and just getting as many physio appointments, massages, getting in the pool, getting into ice baths and looking after ourselves.

Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO

“The coaches are aware we’re a bit sore from the game, and that’s why we didn’t train yesterday. Today was getting back into it, a bit of running and getting guys moving. It was good to get moving again. We’ll have a day off tomorrow – everyone should be well-healed by Thursday afternoon.”

Some need more healing than others, of course. There will be at least two changes from the team that started against New Zealand and those who weren’t involved at all will add a boost to the training intensity as they look to show off the benefit of selecting a fresh body over a battle-scarred one.

“Not everyone’s going to be fully fit going in to a game,” adds McGrath, “there’s always bangs and knocks and there’s guaranteed to be injuries. That’s just the way sport in general is. You have to be able to work around it. There’s guys who are ready to step up in every position and it’s happening pretty quickly.

Not that Cian Healy should get any ideas about taking over the number one jersey this weekend. If McGrath is any barometer, there won’t be any danger of players considering the Wallabies as an opportunity to rest or ease themselves down a few notches of intensity after the much-hyped All Black encounters.